We are on the brink of a technological revolution. The rapid development of quantum computing and the power that it will bring means we are on the cusp of solving problems that we cannot solve with classical computers. But the question quantum physicist Danielle Holmes says we should be asking is, what will happen to AI when the computational power behind it increases dramatically? We are already concerned about the impact of AI on jobs and people alike, so does the collision of AI and quantum computing have a dark side? After all, we are dealing with technology that has the capacity to replace the human race. How can we thrive once intelligence decouples from human consciousness?
These are the questions asked - and answered - by Danielle Holmes, a Postdoctoral Researcher in the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications, in the Faculty of Engineering at UNSW Sydney. It is part of a new series from the UNSW Centre for Ideas in which UNSW academics and researchers challenge us to think about how we might not just survive, but thrive in this century of uncertainty.